Le Mans lands veteran playmaker El-Amin

Le Mans Sarthe Basket found a point guard for the upcoming season by inking Khalid El-Amin to a one-year deal on Thursday. El-Amin (1.78 meters, 33 years old) arrives from Cibona, where he averaged 8.6 points and 1.8 assists in 20 Croatian League games last season, helping his team to lift the trophy. He has also played for Lietuvos Rytas in Lithuania, Budivelnik and Azovmash in Ukraine, Turk Telekom and Besiktas in Turkey, Strasbourg in France, Ramat Gan in Israel and Chicago of the NBA. He rose to attention as the point guard on a University of Connecticut team that won the NCAA championship in 1999. El-Amin earned 2010-11 Turkish Airlines Euroleague Top 16 Week-2 co-MVP honors with a 29 index, hitting a buzzer-beating triple to make L. Rytas beat Caja Laboral in Vitoria. He was named to the 2008-09 All-Eurocup Second Team with Azovmash. El-Amin helped Azovmash to win the Ukrainian Cup title in 2006 and 2009 and also lifted the 2008 Turkish Cup trophy with Turk Telekom. He has also been a member of the USA basketball team and helped it to win the gold medal at the 1998 Goodwill Games.